Part I – Eligibility

1. Project name:

Development and implementation of a sustainable resource management plan for Marsabit mountain and its associated watersheds

2. GEF Implementing Agency: United Nations Environment Program (UNEP)

3. Country or countries in which the project is being implemented:

KENYA

4. Country eligibility: Kenya has ratified the relevant conventions on the following dates:

UNCBD: 26/07/94

UNFCCC: 30/08/94

UNCCD: 24/06/97

5. GEF focal area(s), and/or cross-cutting issues:

Biodiversity focal area with relevance to climate change and the cross-cutting issue of land degradation

6. Operational program/Short-term measure:

Main focus/entry point is Operational Program # 12 on Integrated Ecosystem Management with relevance to: Operational Program # 13 on Biodiversity Important to Agriculture; Operational Program # 1 on Arid and Semi-Arid Zone Ecosystems; Operational Program # 2 on Freshwater Ecosystems and Operational Program # 4 on Mountain Ecosystems.

7. Project linkage to national priorities, action plans, and programs:

The project responds to the National Biodiversity Action Plan and the National Development Plan. These plans put “Priority focus on conservation of the designated natural World Heritage sites in the context of country’s national biodiversity strategy and action plan as well as the National Poverty Eradication strategy, particularly as it touches on the less endowed arid and semi-arid lands (ASALs)”. The project will collaborate with the Marsabit component of the “Management of Indigenous Vegetation for the Rehabilitation of Degraded Rangelands in the Arid Zone of Africa” project which covers only two of the 26 Range Units in the district (Korr and Ngurunit). In working with KARI, which supports this project, there will be close links with the Kenyan component of the Desert Margin Programme (DMP). There will be no operational overlap with either project.

8. GEF national operational focal point and date of country endorsement:

Endorsed on 12^th of March 2002 by Mr. B.O. K’Omudho, Director National Environment Secretariat, Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources, Kenya. Endorsement Letter Ref. No. NES/CONF.07/10 VOL.IX

9. Project rationale and objectives:

Protection of threatened ecosystems is a cornerstone of conservation strategies at the global, national and local levels. Nevertheless, it is widely acknowledged that protected areas around the world – including the treasured Biosphere Reserves – are suffering from insufficient and insecure funding. In the case of the Marsabit ASAL district, very poor infrastructure and a nomadic population, relying almost exclusively on livestock resource for its wealth, add to the problems.

Marsabit mountain and its environs is a unique ecological system in Eastern Africa with the most developed and extensive upland forest on an extinct volcano within an arid setting. This upland forest over thousands of years has developed a distinct plant association endemic to this area. It is the only source of all the water for the surrounding desert region. The mountain is the home of the most unusual species of herbivores including the greater Kudu and a sub-species of dryland elephant only found in this area. The largest elephant ever found in Kenya named "Ahmed" lived in Marsabit national park and until its death, had received round the clock protection through a presidential proclamation. Considered a national heritage, it is now preserved at the national museum. The forest is under tremendous pressure from the growing Marsabit town and the surrounding populations.

In addition, the mountain harbours two crater lakes - Lake Paradise and the Elephant Pool lake, the greater part of whose recharge comes, not from rainfall in this arid area, but from mist condensate on species of saprophytic moss plants living on indigenous forest trees. The mist trapping mechanism used by the various moss species, having a symbiotic relationship with the forest trees, is not completely understood or scientifically documented. This is yet another reason for inviting both national, international as well as local residents’ conservation support for this unique ecosystem whose eventual understanding may reveal novel ways for ground moisture enhancement that could be of benefit not only to this particular ecosystem but similar arid lands mountain ecosystems elsewhere in the globe.

The national forest cover now stands at a precarious 2-3% at a time when the emission of green house gases (GHG) has been increasing steadily. Any further degradation of forests, including those in the Marsabit mountain systems, will spell another loss in the carbon sequestration system and its inevitable aftermath.

There is reason to fear that if GEF and the international community do not step in at this time, this valuable and unique ecosystem could be lost for ever which would be an ecological disaster that would spell doom for a large pastoral population in Northern Kenya. Hence the need for this project.

The range resource inventory in Marsabit District, the selected project area, is, without doubt, among the best studied and documented in Kenya. Research and analysis of a wide spectrum of biotic and abiotic factors affecting primary and secondary range productivity and how these affect human welfare was done over almost two decades, first by the UNESCO-supported Integrated Project on Arid Lands (IPAL) most intensively in the early 1980s, then by the GTZ-supported Range Management Handbook project in the late 1980s and early 1990s. More recently, additional knowledge and data have been generated by the EU-supported Agricultural Research Support Project (ARSP) still being implemented by the Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI). The high investment of intellectual capital in the area enhances the probability of a successful implementation of a resource management plan.

The outcome of all these investments is the availability of the most comprehensive range resource database in the country and the region. The data has made it possible to scientifically map out the study area into 26 range units. Over 30 GIS-maps detail each range unit’s resource and agro-climatic base. The most important maps are listed and described in Annex 1. Based on concomitant anthropological studies, traditional range management practices have been documented. Using the database, an attempt has been made to improve on the traditional management practices. For each of these range units, the level of range biomass offtake for each of the major livestock breeds (camel, cattle, sheep and goats), measured in the number of days each livestock can be sustainably maintained, has been worked out. This has been done in respect of normal short and long rains periods as well as the intervening dry spells.

Maps have been developed on recommended stock movements during all seasons. Factors influencing the range management plans are described in Annex 2. Recommendations have also been made for range management during abnormally dry periods and the management of designated grazing reserves to be set aside for that purpose. What has been missing has been funding for the testing and validating the carefully designed resource management implementation plan.

Goal:

The overall goal of the project is to ensure the long-term conservation and sustainable use of the unique mountain ecosystems in Marsabit by developing and implementing a management plan that could be replicated in similar environments in the Horn of Africa.

It is important to recapitulate that, besides national and international support for the conservation of this ecosystem, sustainability will critically hinge on winning over the support of local residents to whom the Marsabit mountain’s watershed is crucial to their livelihoods and survival. Central to their livelihoods is livestock keeping in a pastoral setting. Maintaining their herds and flocks in the low and mid-latitude lands for as long as possible on water resources derived, in significant part from the mountain, must therefore be seen as an integral part of the mountain ecosystem conservation plan. Hence, the specific objectives outlined below and described more fully in the description of the Medium Size Project itself, devotes much attention on the sustainable management of the traditional grazing and woodland systems on the lower reaches of the mountain.

Objectives:

The specific objectives of the project will therefore revolve along two axes: environmental conservation and poverty alleviation. For the environmental component, the project will be designed to be: i) the custodian of the large ecological database already existing for this area and associated resource management plan; ii) The focal point for disseminating the data and information to all agencies involved in environment protection and development; iii) an agent or centre for promotion of sensitisation and training forums on the sustainable use of the fragile ASAL environment iv) The base for continuing updating of data and refinement of the resource managing plan and v) A lead agency in canvassing for additional resources to strengthen the capacity of stakeholders to implement the management plan; vi) A lead agency in canvassing for funds to roll out the activities described for the Marsabit mountain area progressively to the two main mountain areas in the district, namely, Mount Kulal and Ndoto mountain range in the western border area. For Kenya, the aim is to use the Marsabit District model for the other ASAL districts. Ultimately, the intention is, with UNEP’s support, to use this science-led model for the Greater Horn of Africa and beyond.

The poverty alleviation component will focus primarily on promotion of strategies for sustainable use of the Marsabit mountain ecosystems and the development and provision of alternative livelihoods. Although eco-tourism and promotion of cottage industries will be an important feature of this component, the immediate thrust will be promotion of marketing of livestock, as the main wealth of the area, as well as their products. The project will be designed to accomplish this through the promotion of primary, secondary and terminal markets using models evolved from previous studies and contained in various resource plans. It is also intended to promote this by canvassing support for district, zonal and national livestock marketing groups and particularly, the Kenya Livestock Marketing Council – an emerging private sector organisation.

The project will build positive partnerships with the approximately 30 registered NGOs, societies/CBOs and about 10 externally assisted projects in the district that have an environmental and rural development focus. This will also include churches and other religious organisations, as well as government departments working in Marsabit District. In addition, similar bodies working in the Samburu and Moyale districts could be co-opted. It is through these organisations that a progressive testing of the Marsabit Resource Management Plan can be made.

Continuous acquisition and utilisation of accurate agro-ecological and socio-economic data for the purpose of evolving dynamic resource management plans is at the heart of this project. To ensure that quality data is available throughout the life of this project and to serve as a model for future expansions of the programme, the project will rely substantially on graduate students and their supervisors in a wide spectrum of disciplines. Initially 8 graduate students will be supported and utilised for that purpose. Employment of the needed complement of full time professionals for an MSP such as this would be too expensive.

Being a medium sized project, the project will not be designed to cover the entire 62,000 sq. Km. of the district but will concentrate on the Marsabit mountain watershed not now covered by any other project. This project will encompass the mountain itself, Loglogo, Kargi, Maikona and Bubisa and including Range Units 10, 11, 12, 14, 17, 19 and 23 in GIS map 20.

To be completed in 3 years. The main outcome of this project is expected to be validation and refinement of the scientifically well designed range resource management plan and to use the plan as a model to demonstrate that it is possible and socio-economically viable to utilize the ASALs sustainably, given appropriate intellectual and financial support. The other major outcome of the project is expected to be poverty alleviation, following improved animal husbandry practices, livestock disease control, improved livestock marketing and introduction of other income generating activities.

The range resource management plan for Marsabit, once validated, will be used as a model for other ASAL districts in Kenya. Ultimately, the intention is, with UNEP's support, to use the model for the Greater Horn of Africa and beyond.

Specifically the following are some of the expected outputs of the project:

1. Stakeholders with environmental management and rural development focus in Marsabit District will be brought together to form a partnership for participatory and sustainable management of resources in the project area.

2. Systems for gathering information on environmental and livestock marketing issues, as well as analysis and dissemination of that information will be established.

3. The well-designed IPAL Resource Management Plan will be validated and refined.

4. A viable marketing system for livestock and livestock products will be established.

5. Income generating activities that are expected to provide employment for the community, thereby reducing reliance on livestock and pressure on land, will be established.

6. Capacity of communities to undertake sustainable development will be greatly enhanced.

7. Specific capacity within AGREF to manage the project and to ensure that it grows into a district-wide project will be established.

11. Planned activities to achieve outcomes:

1. Identifying potential stakeholders, initiating and consolidating partnerships for participatory and sustainable management of natural resources in the project area. This is planned to be carried out during a preliminary diagnostic phase that will involve visiting and holding discussions with the stakeholders. These will comprise members of the communities living in the project area, NGOs, CBOs, religious organizations, relevant government departments and other development agencies (NEC, NEMA, UNEP, UNESCO, RCMRD, DRSRS, UNDP Drylands Development Centre and KARI) in Nairobi to build and consolidate partnerships for implementing the project. Linkage with KARI will be given priority.

The views of the potential stakeholders and collaborators, coupled with technical knowledge from the resource inventory and climatic database of the project area, will form a basis for designing the resource management project.

2. The project will participate in collection, analysis, storage and dissemination of information/data on the condition of the range and livestock population dynamics. Given existing interest and expertise in this aspect in KARI, the project will support contributory postgraduate studies in that area, including training of NGOs/CBOs personnel in collection of quality data in collaboration with KARI. The project, in collaboration with KARI and others, will be involved in the organisation and continuous updating of the large ecological database already existing for the area, as well as the associated resource management plan. Participatory methodologies will be used for identifying the priorities.

3. Community selected priority aspects of the Resource Management Plan will be implemented in collaboration with relevant partners. Participatory monitoring of implementation will be undertaken. The initial identification of the priorities will be done during the diagnostic phase and will be firmed up early in the implementation phase.

4. Support to the recently formed Kenya Livestock Marketing Council and its sub-regional and district affiliates with the aim of facilitating the establishment of viable livestock marketing systems. Livestock traders will be assisted to intensify their activities by setting up primary and secondary markets at selected trading centres and by designating specific market days. The project, in collaboration with partners, will assist in rehabilitation of trek routes and holding grounds in order to promote livestock marketing. The project will also participate in collection, analysis and dissemination of market information (including price reporting). In order to minimise the negative impact of major epidemic diseases (Rinderpest and CBPP) on livestock trade, the project will support the Department of Veterinary Services to ensure that compulsory vaccination against them is effectively carried out.

5. Through appropriate partners, the project will assist members of the community to initiate or expand income-generating activities (e.g. tapping, harvesting and marketing of gum arabic, harvesting and marketing dead wood for firewood, cottage industry, honey production and marketing, processing and preservation of cheese and yoghurt.)

6. Develop capacity of communities in the project area to undertake sustainable development. This will be achieved by supporting extension training programs, supporting the existing mobile extension services as well as programs aimed at awareness creation regarding sustainable resource management in a fragile environment.

7. Establish specific capacity within AGREF to manage the project and to ensure that it develops into a district-wide project. To achieve this, the project will:

· Set up and equip a service base in Nairobi through which easy and continuous contact will be established with UNEP, KARI, DRSRS, RCMRD , UNDP Drylands Development Centre, NEMA, Veterinary Department, Livestock Marketing Council and the head offices of most of the NGOs operating in the project area;

· Establish a central facility for accessing, analysing and transmitting climatic and terminal markets data to the operational office and lead NGO in the project area;

· Establish and equip an operational base in Marsabit from which day to day contacts with stakeholders will be made and through which validation of climatic data will be made and fed into the biophysical database driving the resource management plan at the service base in Nairobi;

· Establish a facility for receiving and distributing information and data to collaborators, stakeholders and policy makers.

ASSESSMENT OF SUSTAINABILITY AND RISK ANALYSIS

Long Term Sustainability

The outputs and activities proposed by this project are directly related to the long-term sustainability of natural resource management by the local people themselves. The participatory approach in the planning, implementation and monitoring of the project ensures "ownership" of the project by the people, thus enhancing sustainability. Local capacity building through targeted training will also enhance sustainability.

Insecurity, either in the project area or in the neighbouring areas, would interfere with livestock marketing and eco-tourism, among other things. Government failure to provide support services such as marketing infrastructure (e.g. roads) would have adverse effects on livestock marketing and eco-tourism. Poor overall socio-economic framework in the country would also adversely affect implementation of some components of the project.

12. Stakeholders involved in project:

Pastoralists directly and through the NGOs, CBOs, civic groups, the Marsabit DDC, NEMA, UNEP, UNDP Drylands Development Centre, UNESCO, RCMRD, DRSRS and KARI.

The main registered NGOs will be Catholic and Anglican Churches with an associated NGO (Food For the Hungry International - FHI) and National Aid for Pastoral Change. The CBOs will include Salt Lick and the Salato Women’s Group.

Part II – Information on Block A PDF Activities

13. Activities to be financed by the PDF A:

The PDF A phase will entail the following sets of activities:

· Visit Marsabit District and discuss the project with the District Commissioner and key members of the District Development Committee. The intention will be to sell the project as the first or pilot component of 3 phases of a programme to cover the district. The purpose of this approach will be to minimise rivalries and possible antagonism.

· While in the district confirm the existence of the approximately 30 NGOs, CBOs and church/religious groups and assisted projects said to be working in the environmental and developmental fields in the project area as described above, and discuss project aims with a view to their becoming stakeholders in the project;

· Because project execution will primarily be a facilitative and mediating function, evaluate the potential role of each intended stakeholder for receiving, promoting and reporting on the use of the resource management data and for collecting new environmental and socio-economic data on a regular basis (ownership of computers, electronic mail connectivity, printers);

· Identify the spatial distribution of potential stakeholders in the 7 range units covered by the project;

· Nationally, discuss and seek comments from key institutional collaborators including members of the National Environment Council (NEC) and the National Environment Authority (NEMA). Among other agencies, consult UNEP, UNDP Drylands Development Centre, UNESCO, and Regional Centre for Mapping of Resources for Development (RCMRD). Also to be consulted will be the Department of Resource Surveys and Remote Sensing (DRSRS) which, with RCMRD, are intended to be a regular source of climatic and environmental data for updating the existing database, and KARI which, as successor of IPAL, continues to have an active research presence in the project area and would be an important activity node.

· Among promoters of the interest of pastoral people, discuss the project with the Pastoral Forum, an active civic group, as well as relevant members of the Pastoral Parliamentary Group made up of members of Parliament representing ASAL districts. For the same reasons as stated above, emphasis will be made on the pilot nature of the project and canvass for support for subsequent phases as well as ultimate expansion to other ASAL districts.

· Armed with the views of potential stakeholders and collaborators, and technical knowledge from resource inventory and climatic database of the project area, design the resource management project.

The following are the main expected outputs of the PDF A:

¨ Participatory workshops bringing together key stakeholders and collaborators in sustainable management of natural resources in Marsabit District. The workshops will assist in building and consolidating partnerships for implementation of the MSP.

¨ Firming up of priorities indicated in the MSP through a participatory process so as to create “ownership” by the stakeholders, particularly members of the participating communities, thus enhancing sustainability of the project.

¨ Finalisation of a management structure for the MSP.

¨ A full proposal for the MSP, taking stakeholders’ views into account, will be finalised.

Duration: To be completed in 3 months.

The Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI), a strong partner within the Association for Strengthening Agricultural Research in Eastern and Central Africa, has been approached and interest has been expressed in this project, particularly in the context of R&D for the Greater Horn of Africa. KARI’s contribution would initially be derived from the current programme (NARP II) supported by the World Bank and likely to end in 2003, as well as NARP III which would commence thereafter. An amount of $100,000 has been mentioned as contribution from NARP II and “substantial” amounts subsequently.

16. Total budget and information on how costs will be met for the Block A (including the Block A grant):

Preparation Phase Budget by input. (Include non-GEF cash and in-kind budget contributions.)

Budget Item GEF

Personnel costs (fees & per diems) $18,200

Workshops $ 456

Transport and Telecommunication $ 1,963

Equipment/Data analysis $ 3390

Total $24,009

OTHERS - CO-FINANCING: (IN KIND)

Professional and support staff time = $7,900

Overhead = $1,400

Ground Transport =$2,280

TOTAL =$35,589

Medium Sized Grant – $1,000,000 for implementation of the proposed pilot project to cover Marsabit mountain and its immediate watershed. The budget for the MSP is as shown below:

SUMMARY EXPENDITURE FOR 3 YEARS (GEF COMPONENT)

Budget Item Amount in US$ Percentage

Vehicles 152,750 15

Transport expenses 176,949 18

Equipment 32,626 3

Rent & utilities 31,500 3

Personnel 345,000 35

Consultancies 81,000 8

Participatory training 49,272 5

Community mobilisation

and training 47,550 5

Subtotal 925,647

UNOPS support services 74,052 7

GRAND TOTAL 999,699 100

While physical implementation of the project would rely on good collaboration with NGOs, CBOs and public organisations already operating in the district, technical inputs will primarily come from graduate students from national universities and their professors supervising them. Funds have been allocated in the project for their registration at the universities and field operations in the project area. The project will also provide for their supervisors. In this context, it is expected that KARI, who would physically host the project and provide it with office space, will also provide graduate students. These, along with others from other national institutions, would be important participants in data collection and analysis and for sharing this data with the project for continuous resource base inventory which is necessary for month-by- month management planning.

Approaches are being made to other potential funding sources but the exact value of all anticipated co-financiers to this project will not be known with any degree of accuracy until the PDF A preparation phase has been done.

Part III - Information on the Applicant Institution

This project is proposed by and will be executed by the Agricultural Research Foundation (AGREF). The head of this agency was twice a reviewer of the UNESCO-supported IPAL project and participated in the review of the project’s resource management plan. In the past 15 years AGREF has been involved in 9 studies in Kenya’s northern rangelands which include the proposed project area as well as 7 in Kenya’s southern rangelands.

For many years, the Head of the Foundation was responsible for KARI’s ASAL range/livestock programme including the research centre in Marsabit.

18. Date of establishment, membership, and leadership:

AGREF was established in 1985 as a non-profit agency. Despite its initial intention to limit operations to eastern and central Africa, the Foundation has accepted invitations to participate in approximately 60 agricultural projects all over Africa.

19. Mandate/terms of reference:

Its mandate is to involve indigenous agricultural scientists in the East and Central African region in all research and development activities that their skills qualify them to do. It is clear to AGREF that if more opportunities are not created, then, with the catalysis given by the political conflicts within the region, skilled people will leave the region in greater numbers.

20. Sources of revenue:

AGREF derives its financing from fees. Managed by an international Board, AGREF has provided grants to research institutions, including the Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI) and the University of Nairobi.

21. Recent activities/programs, in particular those relevant to the GEF:

Besides involvement in many ASAL projects in Kenya, six of AGREF’s recent work has been in other African countries including Somalia, Sudan, Egypt, Tunisia, Ghana and Nigeria. The studies have covered project design, review as well as evaluation of the effects of environmental and socio-economic effects of range/livestock interaction and constraints to livestock marketing. AGREF is a member of Somalia Aid Coordination Body’s (SACB) Livestock Working Group. The group brings together FAO, UNDP, World Bank, WFP, USAID, EU, OAU/IBAR as well as NGOs involved in Somalia projects..

Part IV - Information to be completed by Implementing Agency

22. Project identification number:

Not yet assigned.

23. Implementing Agency contact person:

UNEP Division of GEF Coordination

Tel. 254-2-624165

Fax. 254-2-624041

Email: gefinfo@unep.org

24. Project linkage to Implementing Agency program(s):

The project will be implemented by UNEP.

The government of Kenya has expressed the wish for UNEP to implement this project from their current experience in working on similar activity on the Lake Baringo project. UNEP is also in the best position to implement this project because it funded and supervised the preceding Integrated Project on Arid Lands, which carried out the studies on which this pilot demonstration project will be based. In its GEF role as facilitator for exchanges of new technical approaches and best practices in natural resources management, UNEP is also currently involved in the implementation of Management of Indigenous Vegetation for Rehabilitation of Degraded Rangelands in the Arid Zone of Africa and the Desert Margin Programme in Africa which will benefit from exchanges of experiences with this project. UNEP’s location in Kenya affords it the possibility to use this project as a demonstration for a wide range of training programs for resource managers which are undertaken at its headquarters in Nairobi.